Portable media devices, portable computing devices, smart phones, tablets, laptops, and other media and computing devices have become ubiquitous. The features and capabilities of these devices have similarly multiplied.
In order to take full advantage of these features and capabilities, the universe of accessories that may communicate or operate in conjunction with these media players and computing devices has similarly expanded. Headphones, earbuds, jewelry, pedometers, watches, headsets, and other wearable devices, external speakers, FM transmitters, remote controls, keyboards, mice, game controllers, and other input devices, and other accessories fill electronics stores.
These accessories are often small sized and battery powered. Accordingly, they need to be charged to be useful, and each charge may last for only a limited amount of use. These accessories may be recharged using docking stations. Such docking stations may receive power from a power source and use that power to charge the accessory.
Such power transfers may require connections between docking stations and accessories that include connector inserts and receptacles. These inserts and receptacle may each have several pins. These complicated connectors may be large in size. These large connectors may limit how small an accessory may be made. Also, these complicated and bulky connectors may degrade an accessory's appearance.
Thus, what is needed are circuits, methods, and apparatus that provide charging to an accessory from a docking station using a simplified interface.